Why might surgery be needed?
A persistent perforation allows water and bacteria to enter the middle ear, increasing the risk of infection and discharge. In some cases it is also associated with reduced hearing.
What is chronic suppurative otitis media, and who does it affect?
It is a long-standing ear infection in which the eardrum has a perforation of variable size. It causes a continuous or intermittent mucopurulent discharge, which tends to increase during flare-ups. It can affect both children and adults.
What are the long-term risks?
The perforation prevents the ear from healing completely and keeps a source of infection active. Over time, chronic infection can erode or damage the chain of tiny bones in the middle ear (the ossicles), leading to a progressive loss of hearing.
How is it treated?
Surgery is the treatment of choice. The operation, known as myringoplasty or type I tympanoplasty, closes the perforation and rebuilds the eardrum. The repair uses the patient’s own tissue (autologous graft), typically muscle fascia or cartilage.
Anaesthesia, hospital stay and follow-up
- Anaesthesia in adults
- usually local, unless clinical needs dictate otherwise
- Anaesthesia in children
- general
- Hospital stay
- one night, with discharge the following day
- Follow-up
- first post-operative visit after about one month
This information is provided for general guidance. Every treatment decision is made during a specialist consultation.